"That is why we are training 13,000 maths specialists over the next decade to champion maths in every primary school, with the first teachers beginning the programme in January this year."

Tests set for 155 teachers in 18 schools as part of the Channel 4 documentary series Dispatches revealed that one third could not correctly divide 1.4 by 0.1, while only 40 per cent correctly answered that 2.1 per cent of 400 is 8.4.

The programme was conducting an investigation into maths standards in England for a two-part programme entitled Kids Don't Count.